The 1908 presidential election was a contest between the Republican candiate William Howard Taft, and the Democratic candidate William Jennings Bryan. Taft was Theodore Roosevelt's hand-picked nominee when the outgoing president decided to keep his promise not to see another term. Bryan was the Democrat's nominee for the third time, having lost the election to his Republican opponent in 1896 and 1900. This was the first election in which both candidates made ample use of recording technology to release short versions of their popular stump speeches.